Saviors?
by OUATlover2000
Summary: What if Snow White and Prince Charming had twins, Emma and Raven. Snow and Charming were forced to send their girls into a world without magic all on their own, at least they thought. 11 years later, they find themselves in a new foster home in Storybrooke. They were placed under the care of David Nolan- town sheriff- he finds himself instantly falling in love with the two girls.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

" _Your majesties! There's no time! You have to get the princess' to the wardrobe!" Gepetto told the royal couple. "Grumpy just warned us of the queen's arrival! She's here!"_

 _Snow bit her lip and fought back her tears. "Take them David. We have no other choice. If Regina finds out, she'll kill them. She hasn't a clue about the prophecy of our girls just yet. They're sisters! They'll protect one another." Snow assured her husband. "Charming. Go."_

" _I love you." David put both girls in the same bassinet and carried them to the nursery, where the wardrobe was built. He managed to kill or fatally injure every guard of the Queen's that got in his way. When they reached the nursery, He placed a soft kiss to each of their foreheads. "Daddy love you. Find us." He placed the bassinet inside the wardrobe. "I love you Emma and Raven. Always Believe." He told his girls and shut the wardrobe._

XXX

Emma and Raven Swan were in the back seat of the car that belonged to their new social worker, she was much nicer than their previous one, her name's Lucy.

"This sucks." Emma grumbled.

Raven looked over to her twin sister. "Come on Em. At least we're still together. They could've separated us."

Emma smiled at her sister. "Yeah, cause that worked out last time." She said with a smirk. "They practically had to pry us apart."

"What are you girls back there talking about?" Lucy chimed in.

Raven looked up a little shyly. "When our last social worker tried to separate us."

"I'm pretty sure that's why she suddenly transferred to New York." Emma said. "It's okay though. I did _not_ like her."

Their social worker glanced back at the sisters after swallowing a chuckle at Emma's comment. "Well, what happened?"

"We both ran away and met at our secret spot and when they showed up we latched onto each other and refused to let go." Emma said, a bit too proudly.

Lucy chuckled. "Do you guys wanna hear about your foster father?" The car got a little quiet. "Come on girls. I know you don't like it, no one does, but give him a shot, alright?"

Unexpectedly, Raven spoke up. "What's he like? Have you met him?"

"I've indeed met him, he seems a good man. He's the sheriff of the town that I'm taking you." Both girls nodded.

XXX

David was worried. He knows he wants to be a father, he's always wanted to be a father. That's actually why he and Kathryn divorced, he wanted a family, she didn't.

What if he's a terrible father? What if they don't like it here? What if they hate him? What if-? His thoughts were cut off by the knock at the door. "You can do this Nolan. You're the sheriff for Christ's sake. You can handle two eleven year olds. You can be a good father."

He told himself quietly. He opened the door and immediately all his worries melted away at the sight of the girls before him. "Hi. Good to see you again Miss Lewis. You must be Emma and Raven." He greeted crouching down a little bit. "I'm David."

XXX

The girls have been settling in with David for a week now, but now they had to go to school. "Okay girls, wake up, time for school." Nothing. "Okay..." He walked into Emma's room, maybe he just didn't say it loud enough. "Emma. Wake up." He said slightly louder. Still nothing. He sighed. Maybe waking Raven will be easier. He stepped out of Emma's room and went across the hall. "Raven. Wake up." He said shaking her gently. She groaned. A groan. Better than nothing, right? "Raven." He said a bit louder, and a slight shake of her arm.

She opened her eyes. "Huh?"

"School."

She sat up and rubbed her eyes. "Where's Emma?" He glanced back at the room across the hall and she giggled. "She's a _really_ deep sleeper. I can wake her. Show you how to get her to wake up right away." She told her foster father. Raven knew the perfect way to wake Emma. She got over the immediate shyness about a few days after staying with David.

"Okay." He said seeing no harm in it. "Sure." They walked across the hall to Emma's room. David saw a mischievous smirk out of the corner of his eye. "Wait." He said when they got to Emma's room. "Why are you smiling like that?"

Raven gave one last smirk, then jumped up and sat on Emma's back. "Wake up! Wake up!" She chanted.

David's eyes went wide. "Raven-" He was about to get on to her when he heard Emma mumbling something.

"I totally hate you." She mumbled, then rolled over, causing Raven to fall on the floor. Both girls erupted into a fit of giggles, and David just smiled at them. Eventually Emma noticed David in the room. "Oh… Hi David."

He smiled at them. "School starts in an hour, you guys should start getting ready." He told them. "Any requests for breakfast?"

"Anything?" Emma asked, David nodded. Both girls looked at each other and in unison said, "Chocolate chip pancakes!"

David chucked. "I'll start that and you girls get ready for school. Your teacher is very excited to meet you today."

XXX

"Okay girls. This is Miss Blanchard."

Miss Blanchard smiled down at the two girls. "Hello Emma, Raven. I'm very excited to have some new faces in my class this year." She told the girls with an unbelievably wide smile. Emma nearly jumped at how eager the teacher sounded, but Raven embraced it.

"Where do we sit?" Emma asked her when David left. The teacher pointed to two seats next to each other in the second row of desks.

There were only two other kids in the classroom they later learn that they're names are Henry and Grace. After a few minutes, other kids start to pile in the classroom.

Towards the end of the school day, the teacher declared it reading time. Raven saw a book titled ' _Once Upon a Time_ ' her eyes brightened when she saw it. She grabbed it and walked over to her desk.

"Whatch'ya readin'?" Emma asked her sister being nosy, then saw the title. "Fairy Tales? Really Rav?"

Raven just rolled her eyes. "Shut up and read your book Em." She grumbled. Raven was reading the storybook, then Miss Blanchard told them to put there books away. Raven looked up from her book and saw- not Miss Blanchard, no- Snow White. "Woah." She breathed out. She closed the book. "Em. Guess what!" She whispered to her sister.

"What?"

Raven smiled. "I think Miss Blanchard is Snow White." Emma rolled her eyes. "Look." She shoved the book in Emma's face. "She looks _just_ like Miss Blanchard, but with more hair."

"Raven. Show White is a fairytale, nothing else. Fairytales aren't real."

Raven sighed. She should've known Emma wouldn't see it. She went back to reading, forgetting that the teacher told her to put the book away.

Miss Blanchard came over to her. "Raven."

"Huh?" She said not looking up from the book.

She chuckled at her student. "Sweetie. Class is about over. Are you liking the book?"

Raven looked up and smiled sheepishly. "Oh…" She said and looked around the class noticing that everyone had already put their books away. "Yeah, I really like it."

"Would you like to keep it? I found it in my closet a few days ago." Raven nodded eagerly, which made her teacher smile. "It's all yours."

 _ **Please Review...**_


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Raven read the last page of her new storybook after having it for 3 weeks. "Wow..." She had to tell Emma. She had proof. ' _She has to believe me now._ ' Raven ran across the hall to her sister's room. "Emma. Emma. Look at this! I have proof now!"

Emma looked at her sister and saw the storybook. "Raven." She groaned. "For the last time, they're just fairytales."

"Just look. Please?" She begged her twin sister. Emma nodded and Raven smiled brightly. "Yay! I have two parts to show you. Is that okay?"

Emma sighed. "I guess."

" _No matter what you do, don't tell him your name. If he knows your name, he has power over you." The guard told the royal couple. "Rumpelstiltskin! Rumpelstiltskin! I have a question for you."_

" _No you don't." The imp with the scaly skin of a crocodile- otherwise known as The Dark One- said. "They do." He pointed to the royal couple, one of which were pregnant. "Snow White and Prince Charming." The imp said with a boyish giggle. "You insult me. Step into the light!"_

" _We've come to ask you about the-" The prince started, but was cut off by The Dark One._

" _Yes! Yes! I know why you're here! You want to know about the queens threat."_

 _Snow White stepped forward. "Tell us what you know!" She demanded._

" _Tense, are we? I can ease your mind, but for a price."_

 _The prince pulled his wife back protectively. "No. This is a waste of time."_

 _Snow stepped forward again. "What do you want?"_

" _The name of your unborn children." The Dark One suggested._

" _Absolutely not!" The prince cut in._

 _Snow looked back at Rumpelstiltskin. "Deal!" She agreed. "Now tell us. What do you know?"_

 _The imp smiled. "The former queen will cast a dark curse. We all will be trapped in a prison. Just like me, only it'll be worse. This prison will be time. We will be someplace where everything we love, everything we hold dear, will be ripped from us, while we suffer… for all eternity. No more happy endings."_

 _Snow was near tears, the thought of her girls. Losing her girls. It terrified her. "What can we do?"_

" _We? We can't do anything." He reached his arm through the bars of his cell and touched the queens pregnant stomach. "These things, growing inside your belly."_

 _Queen Snow looked down at her stomach and King David drew his sword and hit the imp's hand away from his wife. "Next time I cut it off!"_

" _The infants are our only hope. Get them to safety and someday in the future, they will return… together, they have to stay together. They will find you and… The final battle will begin!" He said with a joyful chuckle._

 _David wrapped a protective arm around his wife. "That's it, we're leaving." They started walking away._

" _Hey! No! We made a deal! We made a deal!" He screamed. "I want their names! I want it! I need it!"_

 _Snow slowly turned around. "Emma and Raven." She said with a small smile, the imp smirked back._

"You see?" Raven exclaimed to her sister. "That's us!" Emma didn't know what to say, she was in a state of shock. "And that's not all!" Raven flipped to the back of the book. She looked over at her sister and calmed down. "Emma, are you okay?"

"It's… This doesn't make sense. It's… they're fairytales. If I've learned anything, it's our lives are anything but fairytales. But then… this." Emma sighed. "Just, keep reading. I like when you read to me Rav, it calms me." Raven nodded and went back to reading.

 _Snow White was in bed, screaming in pain, her husband by her side. "I can't… have these babies now! If they're… born today… we can't go… with them!" She screamed, breathing heavily._

" _Okay. It's okay. The wardrobe's almost finished. Just hold on."_

 _Gepetto- father of pinocchio- burst through the doors with a smile on his face. "It's ready."_

 _David tried lifting his wife, but Doc stopped him. "It's too late! You can't move her."_

 _He slowly lowered his wife back down. "Push! Just push Snow!" Then you heard the cries of a baby._

" _Emma." Snow breathed out, she saw her daughter wrapped in the hand-knitted blanket with her name embroidered in it in purple. Before she even got the chance to hold her, she was hit with more pain. The baby, known as Emma- was passed to her father. Then another infant was born. "Raven." She then saw her younger twin daughter wrapped in the blanket, much like Emma's, but her name was embroidered in it in a darker shade of purple._

 _Snow had both of her daughters in her arms, Her husband right beside her, then she was hit with the realization. "The wardrobe. It only takes two."_

" _Then our plan has failed. At least we're together."_

 _Snow looked down at her girls and she knew, she knew what she had to do. "No. You have to take them."_

" _Are you out of your mind?" He asked, heart broken._

 _She shook her head. "No. It's the only way. We have to save them, protect them."_

" _No, no. You're not thinking straight. You don't know what you're saying."_

 _Just as Snow was going to respond, Gepetto came rushing back through the doors._

" _Your majesties! There's no time! You have to get the princess' to the wardrobe!" Gepetto told the royal couple. "Grumpy just warned us of the queen's arrival! She's here!"_

 _Snow bit her lip and fought back her tears. "Take them David. We have no other choice. If Regina finds out, she'll kill them. She hasn't a clue about the prophecy of our girls just yet. They're sisters! They'll protect one another." Snow assured her husband. "Charming. Go."_

" _I love you." David put both girls in the same bassinet and carried them to the nursery, where the wardrobe was built. He managed to kill or fatally injure every guard of the Queen's that got in his way. When they reached the nursery, He placed a soft kiss to each of their foreheads. "Daddy loves you. Find us." He placed the bassinet inside the wardrobe. "I love you Emma and Raven. Always Believe." He told his girls and shut the wardrobe._

"What? Why'd you stop?" Emma asked her sister. "What happens next?!"

Raven smiled at her sister. "I don't know. That's how it ended. But see," Raven pointed to the blankets in the book. "Those are our baby blankets."

"They are." Emma breathed out.

Raven's smiled widened. "Thank God. I thought you were gonna call me crazy!" They both started to giggle. "But, we have to act like we don't know in front of other people. I… I don't wanna go back. If people know about this, they'll think we're crazy." David was coming upstairs to get the girls for dinner, when he overheard Raven saying something. "When they think we're not normal kids, they send us back. I-" She stopped and took a deep breath, not wanting to cry. "I really don't wanna go back Emmy. I'm scared." She said quietly.

David stepped in the room. "That's not gonna happen." He told the girls, startling them. They both jumped. He grimaced at how startled they were. "I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to scare you, or eavesdrop. But you need to know that I'm different. I know you girls have been through a lot of homes. I don't plan on ever sending you back."

Emma looked at him. "What if they try to take us away?" She asked. "We had a nice home once. It was nice, but the Johnson's didn't have enough money, so they took us away." She said looking down.

David gently lifted her chin up so they were making eye contact. "Then I'll fight like hel-... I'll fight like heck to get you back." He tried to casually correct himself, causing the girls to giggles. "I know it hasn't been long and I know you may not be ready, that's okay. I love you, both of you, from the moment I laid eyes on you girls." They both leapt into his arms, hugging him tightly. He laughed, returning the hug. When the hug broke, he remembered why he came to their rooms in the first place. "Dinner's ready by the way."

 _ **Please Review...**_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Emma and Raven were at recess one day when a few kids came up to them. "Hi, I'm Johnny. Do you guys wanna come play with us in the hallway?" A boy asked.

"No thanks." Raven said politely. "It's against the rules." She stated matter-of -factly.

Emma rolled her eyes. "What she said."

Another boy rolled his eyes. "Don't be such a teacher's pet!" He told them. "You won't _ever_ forget it! I swear on it!" Emma was using her lie detector, he seemed to be telling the truth. "I'm Tyler by the way, Johnny's brother."

Emma and Raven had a bit of a silent conversation, Raven didn't wanna do it, but Emma thought it might be fun. She turned the group. "I'm in! Raven?" She asked looking back over to her sister.

Raven sighed. "I guess."

"Great! I'm Haylee." The only girl from the group said.

The five kids snuck in the school and were standing next to a vacant janitor's closet. "What now?" Raven asked, she wasn't one to normally break the rules. The three kids started laughing. "What's so funny?"

"You think we'd actually become friends with loser orphans like you?" Haylee asked.

They were used to bullies, they've already encountered a few here at Storybrooke Elementary, but Emma felt the need to protect Raven, so she stepped in front of her sister. "Leave her alone!"

The three bullies exchanged glances, they looked as if the were planning something. "Haylee! Hold her back." Johnny said, referring to Raven. Haylee acted quickly and the boys went over to Emma and grabbed her arms.

"Hey! Let me go!" She said. Then she realized they were going towards the closet. "No! No, no, no!" She screamed. "Stop!" She tried getting free, but she wasn't strong enough.

Raven realized that they were taking her to the closet. "No!" Raven screamed. "You can't put her in there!" Raven broke free from Haylee's grasp and ran to the closet, but she was too late, the door was closed. She pushed the boys out of the way and tried opening the door, but it was jammed. "Help me open it!"

Tyler realized it was jammed and tried to help. "Guys! It won't open."

"Emma! Can you hear me?" Raven yelled through the door. Nothing. "Emma!" Nothing. "Answer me, please Em." Still nothing. "I'm getting Miss Blanchard!" She said and ran outside as fast as she could. "Miss Blanchard!" She yelled running towards her teacher, who also happened to be her mother. "You have to help! Come on!"

"Woah, woah. Raven. What's wrong?" She asked, noticing Raven's tears.

"They were being mean! They put her in the closet! It won't open Miss Blanchard. She's really scared of closets. Please, you have to help. The door's stuck." She cried. "Just come on. Please."

The two ran into the school and to the door. After a few minutes she was able to pry the door open, what she saw broke her heart. She saw an innocent little girl shaking and hyperventilating with her knees up to her chest, her arms lying atop them, and face buried in her knees, crying. The poor girl was terrified. She turned to Raven.

"Miss Blanchard." The girl cried.

She rubbed the her arm. "Do you know David's number?" She nodded. The teacher pulled out her phone and gave it to Raven. "Call him." She turned the the three kids responsible. "And you three. Stay right there. Do you understand?" The students nodded, knowing better than to argue with her. The teacher sat next to Emma and pulled the scared girl into her arms. "Shh, you're okay now. You're gonna be alright sweetie."

"Not again. Not again. Not again. Not again." Emma was repeating it like a mantra, it was so quiet that her teacher could hardly hear her.

Raven was in the hallway and after getting somewhat of a hold on her tears, she called David.

" _Sheriff Nolan." He answered._

" _David..." Raven's shaky voice said, then she started crying._

" _Raven?" He asked worriedly. "What's wrong?"_

" _Th-they put her in… in the closet." She cried. "Emmy doesn't… she's scared of closets. She's crying… and shaking and breathing loud. M-miss Blanchard is… she's trying to calm her, but I don't think… I don't think it's working. She's still," Raven looked over at her sister. "She's still crying and shaking."_

" _Princess, I need you to take a deep breath. You need to calm down. I'm on my way."_

After ending the call, Raven gave the phone back to the teacher. She did what david told her to do for a few minutes. Then she looked over at the three kids that made her sister so upset, she just got so angry and the next thing she knew, someone was pulling her off of them and placing her on a bench. It was David.

"Raven. Calm down. Take a deep breath."

She nodded and obliged. "I'm sorry." She cried. "I told them no. I said they can't do that. They didn't listen."

David hugged her. "It's okay." He broke the hug. "I need to go check on Emma. Stay here. Don't go back over there. You hear me?" He told her sternly.

"Yes sir."

David leaned down and kissed the top of Raven's head, then made his way over to his other foster daughter and her teacher. "Hey." He said quietly, trying not to scare the teacher. "How is she?" He asked, then sat down on the other side of Emma.

"She's okay. I think I've got her to calm down a bit, but not much." She told him, then transferred Emma over into David's arms.

He smiled gratefully. "Do you mind making sure that Raven's staying away from those other kids. She… well, let's just say she has a hell of a right hook." He joked, half-heartedly.

She chuckled. "No problem at all. I think I'm gonna walk those three right down to the principal's office. He's probably going to wanna talk to the girls, but I'm sure that can wait." She assured him. She walked out of the closet. "You three." She said pointing at them. "Principal's office. Let's go." She looked over at Raven who appeared to have dozed off on the hall bench.

David was holding Emma in his arms. "Emma. I'm gonna pick you up so we can get out of here." Emma nodded.

David picked her up and Emma's arms immediately went around his neck. "I don't like closets." She whispered in his ear. "I was bad. I'm sorry." She cried into his neck.

He put her down after leaving the closet. "You're not bad. Why would you think that?"

She looked down. "That's what Mr. Stanley told me." She answered quietly.

David got a bad feeling. "Emma. Did Mr. Stanley put you in a closet?" He asked her.

She nodded. "But the policeman took him to jail. But Mr. Stanley was mean to me David. He said mean things to me. He-" She stopped talking, not wanting to finish that sentence, but being around David- around her father- makes her want to tell him everything.

"It's okay Em. You can tell me."

She looked over to make sure Raven couldn't hear. When she told Raven the first time, it made her cry, she didn't want that to happen again. "They separated Raven and I. We were 9. When I… when I tried to leave for our secret spot, he caught me. He hit me… hard. He put me in the closet and said that I was a bad girl." She looked over to David.

David pulled her into a bone crushing hug, he never wanted to let go. "Emma-" He started after breaking the hug, but she interrupted him.

"I didn't mean to be bad. I knew I wasn't supposed to be inside at recess, but they tricked me. They said that we were gonna play in the halls. They started being mean to us. That girl got in Raven's face and called us orphans, so I told her to leave Rav alone. Then the girl was holding Rav and the boys were pushing me in the closet." She said rambling worriedly.

"You're not bad Emma. I promise. You're _good._ The things that man and those kids did to you, that was bad. Not you Em." David pulled her into a softer hug. "I love you."

"I… love you too." She whispered.

He kissed the top of her head. "I think it's time to go home." David went over and woke Raven. "Hey there kiddo. You ready to go home?"

Raven shot up and ran over to her sister. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry!" She hugged Emma tightly. "I tried to stop them Emmy, but I was too late! I was just too late! The door-"

"I'm okay Rav." She told her, then whispered something only they could hear. "Our parents helped me." It was so quiet that Raven barely heard it herself.

XXX

"I think it's about time you girls get to bed." He told the girls at around 9. They were ready to protest, but David interrupted before they could. "You guys had a long day." He looked at his watch. "You guys need rest."

XXX

The girls were asleep, they fell asleep minutes after their heads hit the pillows. He was in his home office, catching up on paperwork when he heard whimpering coming from Emma's room. When he got closer to her bed to wake her, he understood what she was saying, it made it blood boil. "Please." She whimpered. "Don't hurt me no more." She begged. "I'll be good. Promise. Don't make go back in."

"Emma." David said quietly, he gently placed a hand on her arm and shook her slightly. "Wake up Emma, you're okay now. Wake up." Emma's eyes shot open, full of nothing but fear, but when she saw David, she let out a sigh of relief. "He can't hurt you anymore. You're safe. You're here with me, not with him." He promised. "I'll protect you." He pulled her into his arms again. "Do you wanna talk about it?"

"It was a dream." She whispered. "Just a dream." She looked up at David. "I'm sorry. I wish I could just get over it." She laid her head on his shoulder. "You meant it right? You're never gonna send us back?"

"Never ever." He promised.

 _ **Please Review...**_


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Emma didn't go to school the next day and Raven ended up with a three day suspension, so she can't return until Monday.

David dropped them off at school on Monday, but went inside to talk to their teacher. Emma and Raven were sitting at their seats and saw them both blushing. Both girls grinned widely.

XXX

The girls were sitting at a picnic table at the school reading the storybook during recess. A boy with dark hair and brown eyes came over to them. "Can I sit with you guys?" He asked the sisters. He noticed them glancing back and forth. "I'm not gonna be mean. I just wanna read too."

Emma smiled and nodded, she actually thought he was cute. "Okay. I'm Emma and she's Raven. What's your name?"

"Baelfire Gold. You can call me Bae though." He smiled at Emma and she blushed a little. "What are you guys reading?"

"It's a storybook. Miss Blanchard gave it to me." Raven told him. "Do you wanna read with us?" Baelfire nodded.

Raven turned the page to the story of Rumpelstiltskin. After hearing Bae's name, she knew that he had to be The Dark One's son. "That's weird." He said after a minute. "That almost looks like my dad, but with weird skin." Then he pointed to Belle. "And that looks like my mom- well, stepmom- Lacey."

After reading about Belle almost curing Rumple, recess was almost over to the girls shut their book. "Do you like it?" Emma asked him.

Baelfire nodded. "Can I tell you something? It's gonna sound _crazy._ " The both smiled and nodded. "Do you believe in magic?" He whispered. Again, they both nodded. "The story. It's all real, I think. They look like everybody in Storybrooke. I sound crazy, don't I?"

"I think it's time we introduce you to operation Cobra. Bring back all the happy endings." Emma said, smiling. "But we can't tell anyone. They'll think we're crazy." She informed him.

"Okay!" Just then, the students were told that it was time to go inside. Baelfire went to his assigned seat across the room and the twins went to theirs.

"You have a crush on Bae!" Raven squealed in a hushed tone.

Emma's eyes went wide. "Do not! We just met. He's nice. That's all. We have a new friend. It doesn't mean I like him." She said, while her face turned completely red.

"You have a crush on Baelfire." Raven said once again, causing Emma to groan.

XXX

Emma, Raven, and David were all in his truck. "How was school?"

"It was good. Guess what!" Raven said turning to David. "Emma has a crush!" David's head snapped over to his daughters.

Emma's face was red again and she hit her sister. "I do not!" She said. She turned to David. "I _don't_ have a crush. We're just friends."

"Good." He mumbled. "Neither of you can date until you're at least 40." He told them, kind of jokingly. Both girls burst into a fit of giggles. "Who is this _friend_ , anyway?"

"Baelfire Gold." Raven said. "Guess what else!" She said even more excitedly when they got home. "You have a crush on Miss Blanchard." She said.

"What? I-... Why do you think that?" He asked. "Did she say something to you?"

The girls started giggling. "No. You just blush a lot! So does Miss Blanchard." Raven told him.

"I think you should ask her on a date." Emma suggested.

David smirked. "Maybe I already did."

"Really?" David nodded. "What kind of flowers are you gonna get her? You're gonna get her flowers right? What kind of flowers? You _have_ to get flowers!" Raven rambled.

"I think you should get her snowbells!" Emma said. "She'll love snowbells! Trust me!"

Raven nodded in agreement with her sister. "When's your date?"

"Tomorrow. Ruby offered to babysit you guys."

Emma rolled her eyes. "We aren't _babies._ " She told him. "We don't need a _baby_ sitter."

He chuckled. "That's too bad."

XXX

"So… What do you guys wanna do until David gets home?" Ruby asked Emma and Raven.

"We could just watch movies or something." Raven suggested. "Ooh, and we can have ice cream and popcorn while we watch them! I _love_ popcorn!"

Ruby laughed. "David asked that I get some real food in you guys. How about we got pick up some grilled cheeses from the diner and eat them here during movies. _If_ you're still hungry, we can have popcorn after, sound good?" Both girls nodded excitedly.

They made their way to the diner and while they were waiting for their food, they saw Mr. Gold. He approached them. "I don't believe we've formally met yet." He said to the girls.

"I'm Emma."

"I'm Raven."

Mr. Gold's entire demeanor changed, and it didn't go unnoticed by the girls, but they chose not to say anything, yet at least. "What lovely names." He said. "Well, I must be getting home now. Goodbye dearies."

He left the diner and Emma leaned in close to Raven. "Do you think he knows?" She whispered.

"I dunno. We're gonna find out though."

XXX

Emma and Raven fell asleep on the couch next to Ruby- who was also sleeping. David came home and saw his girls sleeping peacefully. He went over and woke Ruby. "Ruby." He whispered and her eyes flickered open. "You should stay in the guest room tonight. I'll text Granny and let her know that you're here." Ruby nodded- knowing she probably shouldn't be driving half asleep- and made her way to the guest room. David carried his daughters- one at a time- to their rooms.

XXX

It was Friday night at almost 11, Emma went into Raven's room- with a few pillows- and woke her. "Em? What are you doing in here?"

"Come on. Mr. Gold's shop is open until midnight. We're gonna go see if he knows." She whispered, while opening the window.

Raven shot up. "Are you crazy?" She whisper-yelled. "What if he comes in to check on us?"

Emma smirked. "Get up and I'll show you." Raven got up. Emma started stuffing pillows under the blanket. "Like that."

Raven internally groaned. "Okay. Let me get my shoes on. And no one can see us. They'll call David."

"It's fine. We'll just go through alleys or something."

Raven rolled her eyes. "Cause that's so much better than getting caught." She muttered while putting her shoes on. "Let's go. We should hurry."

They climbed out the window and made their way to Gold's shop without being spotted. "I'll be with you in a moment!" Gold shouted from the back of the store, upon hearing the door open. He came out. "What can I do for-" He stopped when he saw two eleven year olds in pajamas. "Emma and Raven, is it? What can I do for you at this hour?"

"Cut the crap Gold!" Emma demanded. "How do we break the curse?"

Gold chuckled. "So you know? Good to see that you have your father's tact." He smirked. "It'll come at a price, dearies."

"Fine! We'll do whatever." Raven yelled. "Just tell us how to break it!"

He smirked. "You'll both owe me a favor in the future." He told them. "True loves kiss breaks every curse."

"True love?" Emma questioned. "We're eleven!"

He sighed. "True love comes in all forms."

XXX

David woke up suddenly, he looked over at his clock; 11:35. We went to go check on his daughter's. He opened Raven's door and saw to separate lumps in the bed. ' _Emma must've come in to sleep with Raven again_.' He thought. She often did it when she had nightmares, he walked over to make sure she was okay, he was surprised when he removed the cover from where her face should be, he only saw pillows. He took the entire blanket off of the bed and saw two rows of blankets. He was about to panic when he heard hushed whispers outside the window. The was relieved that they were okay, but he was also angry. He stepped back in the shadows, so they couldn't see him when they crawled back through the window.

XXX

Emma opened the window. "We're gonna get caught. He's gonna be _so_ mad." Raven said.

"Raven, shut up. You're gonna wake David." They both crawled through. She looked around the room and it appeared that they got away with it. "See? I told you we wouldn't get caught." Emma told her sister.

David flicked the light switch on. "I beg to differ."

Both girls nearly jumped out of there skin. "David!" Emma said shocked. "Uh… This probably looks bad. We were just… on a walk! We were on a walk!" She lied. Well not a total lie, they _did_ walk to Gold's shop.

"Don't lie to me. Where were you?"

Emma gulped at the seriousness in his voice. She looked down. "I… we..." She gnawed on her lip nervously. "I'm sorry."

He sighed. "Raven? Do you wanna tell me?"

"It's nothing bad! I promise!" She cried. "We just, we can't tell you. Not yet."

He heaved a sigh of frustration. "Then you're both grounded until you can be honest with me. No TV and you both are gonna have extra chores around the house." He told them in a no-nonsense tone. Both of their shoulders slumped in defeat. "Emma, get your pillows and go to your room. I'll be in to tuck you in, in a few minutes." Emma nodded and left the room.

Raven climbed in bed and David sat next to her. "What you guys did tonight was very dangerous. You guys are children, it's not safe for you to be out there alone, especially this late at night."

Raven nodded. "I know, but-"

"-but nothing Raven." She sighed. David tucked her into bed. "I love you." He kissed her forehead.

"I love you too. Night David." She said and David went across the hall to Emma's bedroom.

Emma looked up at her father coming in her bedroom. "Please don't be mad at me."

He sighed. "I'm not mad Em. I'm disappointed in you. Both of you." He sighed and sat on the edge of her bed. "You scared me to death when I came to check on you guys and found that you weren't there."

"I'm sorry. I'm really sorry." She said fighting back tears. "I know that I was bad, but you should keep Raven, she didn't wanna do it, but-"

"Hey," David said cutting her off. "What are you talking about?" He asked, wiping the stray tears that slipped from her eyes.

Emma sat up. "That's what happens when we break the rules." She said quietly. "We go back or we get hurt, and I know you won't hurt us, so that means we're going back."

"I made you a promise Emma." He told her. Raven seems to understand that he won't send them back, but Emma's having a harder time believing it. "I'm not gonna send you back. I'm upset with you, but I still love you." He hugged her tightly and she returned the hug.

Emma broke the hug. "I'm still sorry. I'm sorry that I can't tell you."

"Why can't you tell me?" He asked. "If you didn't do anything _bad,_ why can't you just tell me what it was?"

Emma sighed. "You won't understand Dad-David." She corrected immediately. She looked up at David to see if he noticed and he did, but all he did was smile. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"

"It's okay." He told her. "You can call Dad if you'd like. Totally up to you." Emma smiled. "Now, lay back down." She obliged and David tucked her in and kissed the top of her head. "But, just so you know, it won't get you out of being grounded." He joked. "I love you Em."

"I love you too. Goodnight… Dad." David smiled and left the room.

David went in his room and texted his girlfriend. _Are you up?_

 _Yeah. Is everything okay?_

 _Mostly so. Can I call?_

 _Definitely :)_

David called Mary Margaret and she answered within seconds..

" _Hey David. What's up?" She answered._

 _He sighed. "I went to go check on Emma and Raven at around 11:30 tonight and found that they had snuck out."_

" _Oh my God. Did you find them? Are they okay? Do you need help looking for them?"_

" _No, no. They're fine Mare. I went to check on them as they were sneaking back in."_

" _What were they doing out this late at night?"_

" _That's the thing." He sighed. "They won't tell me. They're saying it's nothing bad, but I won't understand. I grounded them both."_

" _Wow. That seems out of character, especially for Raven."_

" _I know. I went in Emma's room to tuck her in and Mare, it broke my heart."_

" _What happened?"_

" _She begged me to let Raven stay. She thought I wanted to send them back. It was heartbreaking."_

" _Poor girls. Are you okay David?"_

" _Yeah." He told her. "But it got better when she called me dad." He said with a proud smile._

" _What? That's great!"_

" _It is." He agreed._

" _I'm glad to hear that they're finally letting you in. Past those walls of theirs. It's sad really. Children shouldn't have walls built up so high." She sighed. "I'm gonna let you in on a little secret of mine."_

" _Really?" He asked jokingly. "What is this secret?"_

" _I'm a teacher. I'm supposed to love all my students equally. I don't. Raven and Emma are most definitely my favorites."_

" _They're hard not to love. Even with Emma's consistent stubbornness." He joked._

" _I love how they are together, they stick together all throughout the day. I don't think I've ever seen siblings so close to one another."_

 _David was smiling, he couldn't stop. He really likes this woman. "Okay, okay. Enough about me and my kids. How are you? Has your night been as eventful as mine?"_

 _ **Please Review...**_


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

"How long are we gonna be grounded dad? We've been bored and tortured with chores for like 2 whole weeks." Raven complained after loading the dishwasher. She started calling him Dad shortly after Emma did.

"I don't know Raven. Where did you guys go at 11 o'clock at night and why?" David asked and Raven groaned. "When you answer that question, _maybe_ you'll be ungrounded."

Emma came in the kitchen after cleaning her room. "I'm bored." She looked of to David. "This can't go on forever Dad." She told him. "What are we gonna do on spring break? It starts Friday. That'll be like a whole week of doing nothing-"

"-Unless you girls decide to come clean and tell me where you were and why." Both girls stayed quiet, they wanted to tell him, they just couldn't. "Nothing? Okay. Who wants to help with dinner? Helping is optional. Mary Margaret's coming over. She'll be here in an hour."

"No thanks. Cooking Isn't my thing." Emma said, then turned to Raven. "Wanna go upstairs and _read._ "

Raven nodded. "Storybook?" She mouthed and Emma nodded. "Yup." The girls went upstairs to read the storybook and try to figure out how to break the curse.

"What if we each kiss one of them on the cheek while they kiss? That's like a quadruple true love's kiss." Emma suggested. "That'll have to work."

They heard the doorbell ring and went downstairs, assuming it was Mary Margaret. Raven got downstairs first. "Hey Miss… August?" Raven said, shocked. "What are you doing here?"

"I'll ask you again kid. Who are you?" David said to the 18 year old on his porch.

"August Booth sir. We've been in quite a few group homes together." He said referring to Emma and Raven.

Emma came bouncing down the stairs and Emma saw him. "Oh… What are you doing here?" Emma asked rudely, shocking David and Raven, but not August.

"Come on Em. Don't be like that." He said desperately. "I told you I was sorry. I'm still sorry I left you guys."

Emma's eyes widened and Raven looked away from Emma and at August. "You left?" He nodded. "Em said that they put you in a new home, like they did to me. She said that you were moved right after I was." Raven looked back over to Emma. "You lied to me?"

"I think it's best you leave." David told August and he nodded and left. "Does someone wanna tell me who that was?" He asked and Emma's bottom lip began to quiver. "Em? What is it?"

She began to silently cry, she didn't even realize that David and Raven were watching her until she felt two strong arms wrap around her.

Raven wanted to comfort her sister, but she was so angry with Emma for lying to her. "Why'd you lie to me?" Raven asked, almost in tears herself. "You said we'd never lie to each other, no matter what." She stated, then ran up the stairs.

David broke the hug and led Emma to the couch. "You sit here. I'm gonna go check on Raven." Emma nodded and David went to go talk to Raven.

Emma was surprised when she heard a light knock at the door. She looked out the window and saw her teacher. "Uh-oh." She realized that David probably forgot that she was coming over. She quickly wiped her tears and opened the door. "Hi Miss Blanchard."

Emma moved so that her teacher could come inside. "Where's David?" The teacher asked.

"He's upstairs. He'll be down in a few minutes." Emma said with a sniff.

It was only then that she noticed Emma's red eyes and the red blotches from crying on her face. "Honey, are you okay?" She asked wiping a stray tear from Emma's face.

Emma was about to answer when the oven beeped. "I got it." Emma said and got up and walked in the kitchen. Emma was about to take the chicken out of the oven _without_ potholders, when she was stopped.

"Woah, woah. I don't think so." Mary Margaret told her student. "First of all, you need these." She said, grabbing two potholders off of the counter. "And second, I don't think you should be getting _anything_ out of the oven."

Emma smiled sheepishly while her teacher got the food out of the oven. "Thanks Miss Blanchard. Dad probably would've been mad if I got the chicken out of there." She admitted.

"Outside of school, you and your sister can call me Mary or Mary Margaret, alright?"

Emma looked down after hearing her sister's name. "Raven hates me." She mumbled. She went in the living room and plopped down on the couch.

Mary Margaret followed her and sat down next to her. "Now, why would you say something like that?"

"I lied to her. I just didn't want her to be upset. Now she's crying and it's all my fault." Emma said, new tears streaming down her face.

The teacher pulled her into a hug, which Emma returned. "Honey, i can promise you that she doesn't hate you." Mary Margaret told her and lied her head atop Emma's. "You two are inseparable. Trust me, she'll forgive you. It might take a little time, but she will."

Emma's grip on Mary Margaret tightened. "I hope it doesn't take time." She whispered. They sat there for a minute or two. "Mary Margaret, I'm hungry." Emma said breaking the hug.

"I'll go get your father." Mary Margaret said and made her way up the stairs and found David and a now calm Raven.

"I just don't understand why she lied to me."

David sighed wiped a stray tear from her face. "It sounds to me like she was just trying to protect you. I know for a fact that if you could protect _her_ from any type of pain, you would do it without a second thought. That's what she did for you."

Raven hugged her father and Mary Margaret decided it was a good time to step in. "Hey." She whispered, careful not to startle the two.

"Mare?" David looked at his watch. "Crap. The food."

She stopped him. "No, no. It's fine. I took it out of the oven. Don't worry. Not a big deal."

He smiled gratefully. "Thank you so much Mare. If you weren't there, Emma probably would have-"

"Oh, she tried. I stopped her though. Mostly because she tried to take it out without potholders." She informed him. She looked over at Raven. "Hey sweetie."

"Hi Miss-"

Mary Margaret cut her off. "-I already told Emma. Outside of school, I'm not Miss Blanchard. You can call me Mary or Mary Margaret."

"Okay… Mary. Is Emma okay? Is she still upset?"

Mary Margaret nodded. "I'm afraid so. Maybe talking to her will make you both feel a little better?" Raven nodded and left the room.

"You're amazing." David told her, causing her to laugh. "I'm serious. I've been up here trying to calm her down for a while now."

She smiled at her boyfriend. "It's not a big deal, really. I deal with kids almost every day." She told him. "I actually came up here because Emma's hungry." She informed him.

They made their way down the stairs and saw the sisters hugging.

With everything that happened that night, the girls forgot to try the 'quadruple' true love's kiss. They didn't realize it until they were upstairs. "Oh shoot." Emma mumbled to herself, sitting on her sister's bed, next to her. "We didn't do the true love's kiss thing."

Raven's head snapped up. "Crap." She thought for a moment. "We'll just have to wait, I guess."

Emma was about to respond, when a slip of paper in the window seal caught her eye. "What's that?" She asked and walked towards it, then picked it up.

It read: _We need to talk. I know you're angry at me, but it's about the curse. I'm staying at the Inn- room 12, in case you wanna talk. -AWB_

"He knows?" Raven asked, in a state of shock. "He's known all this time and he's never said anything? I know you don't wanna, but we need to talk to him." Raven said, looking at her sister.

Emma nodded. "I agree with you Ravs, but how? It's not like Dad's gonna let us go off on our own after sneaking out to see The Dark One- of all people."

"Then I'm afraid we have no other choice." She said, Emma raised an eyebrow. "We'll just have to sneak out again."

Emma's eyes nearly popped out of her head. "What?" It took a lot for Emma not to just laugh. "Miss goody-two-shoes _wants_ to sneak out?" She asked with a smirk.

Raven rolled her eyes. "It's not like I want to Ems. But what other choice do we really have?"

Emma sighed. "I guess you're right. We have to break this curse." She told her sister. "When?"

"Tomorrow night." Raven said. "Remember, Dad has to be at work super early, so he's gonna got to bed at like 9, so we sneak out at 10."

Emma smiled. "You make me so proud Ravs." Emma said with a grin on her face.

"Shut up." Raven said giggling.

 _ **Please Review...**_


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Emma went to Raven's room at 9:50, so they could sneak out. "Ready?" Emma whispered to her sister.

"Yeah." Raven opened her window and sighed. "I hope we don't get caught." Raven said to herself.

They climbed out the window and made it to Granny's, they had to figure out how to get past the window to make it to the back door of Granny's that led to the Inn. Emma peeked her head in. "Crap."

"What?" Raven whispered to her sister.  
Emma looked over to sister. "Mary is in there with Ruby." Emma took a deep breath. "Okay, when I say 'go' we run as fast as we can across the window." Raven nodded. As soon as Mary Margaret looked away Emma whispered, "Go." They ran across the window, but not before Mary Margaret caught a glimpse of their back sides.

They made their way to room 12. Raven knocked. "August. It's us. Open the door before someone sees us."

August opened the door. "What are you guys doing here?" He looked over at the clock on the bedside table. "It's late."

The girls pushed their way through and went in the room. "You told us to come. Remember?" Emma snapped.

"I thought you'd come when it's- I don't know- daylight?"

Raven shook her head. "We can't… we're grounded." She could see that He was about to make a smart remark. "Don't ask. What do you know about the curse."

He was about to answer and come clean with them, when he was interrupted by a knock at the door. "Did someone follow you? No one knows I'm staying here, other than Granny and Red."

Both girls shrugged, but his in case it was someone that knew their father.

August went over and answered the door. "Can I help you?" He said.

"No. You can't. But Emma and Raven can." A familiar voice said. "Come on out from your hiding spots girls."

The twins sheepishly stood up from behind the bed. "Hi Mary." Emma said innocently. "What's up?"

"Didn't you both just get grounded for pulling a stunt like this- what?- 2 weeks ago?" Mary Margaret asked, a little annoyed by their behavior. "I already called your father. He's on his way." She turned over to August. "And who are you?" She asked the young adult. "And why do you have two eleven year old girls in your room?"

"Woah, woah! Dude! That's… no!" He raise his voice, grossed out. Mary's eyes widened at the rising of his voice. "I mean… No ma'am, I've know them since they were toddlers. That's… gross."

The girls watched the conversation. "What? I don't get it." Emma said.

"Good!" Mary Margaret and August replied at the same time. Mary looked over at the girls. "What are you guys even doing here?"

"August needed to answer some questions for us." Raven said, thought for a moment. "We want to know why he left us. Still do." She said, it wasn't a lie, they do want to know, but it wasn't why they snuck out.

"Maybe you guys should talk for a few minutes. I'll wait in the hall." Mary Margaret said.

He winced, not wanting to talk about it. "You weren't there Raven." He said quietly. "It wasn't a good home. You left right before it got bad."

"I was there." Emma whispered. "When you left… I was all alone. You said that you'd always protect us, if you could. You didn't."

"Em-"

Emma shook her head. "Don't!" She yelled. "He hurt me." She whimpered. "He put me in the closet." She bawled. "He put me in the closet! No one was there to stop him! Because you ran! You left me! You're a coward!" She screamed. "I hate you! You promised Auggie! You promised to protect me from him! Do you remember?"

"Emma, I didn't know. I thought that if I ran-" He started, his own tears falling from his eyes.

"What'd you think Aug? Did you think that it'd stop? Well it didn't! It only got worse after you left! When you left, it meant he got less money! That made him mad." She started hitting him. Over and over, until she felt someone pull her off of him. "Let me go! It's his fault! It's all his fault!" She screamed, she wasn't sure who it was, but she just kept screaming. "Let me go! Just let me go! He left me! He abandoned me! I hate him!" She only realized it was her father when he pulled her into a hug. "Let me go." She mumbled into his shoulder. After about 20 minutes or crying, she fell asleep on David.

Raven was on the floor covering her ears and crying. Mary Margaret placed a hand on Raven's shoulder to calm her down. "Sweetie, no one's yelling anymore." She removed Raven's hands from her ears. "It's okay. No more yelling." Mary Margaret assured her. Raven flung herself into Mary Margaret's arms and eventually cried herself to sleep as well.

August- who still had tears streaming down his own face- stepped forward. "I think you guys should leave. I need to pack my things. It was a mistake finding them. I never should have. I only brought them more pain."

David carried both girls out to the truck one at a time- obviously- then decided to talk to his girlfriend. "Do you have any idea what happened?"

She sighed. "I saw them running past the big window at the diner, so I followed them inside the Inn." Mary Margaret explained how she thought that they should talk about it, so she stepped out. "I honestly didn't think it would've resulted in this. I thought it would've resolved some inner feelings, not-"

"Hey, it's not your fault Mare." She nodded, but David could tell that she didn't believe him. "I actually think that it might have resolved some of their inner feelings." Mary Margaret raised an eyebrow. "Emma's obviously been holding in that anger for a long time. This helped her let it out." Mary Margaret smiled, which showed him that she wasn't blaming herself so much anymore. "But they're still in a world of trouble." They both chuckled at that.

XXX

After breakfast, David sent the girls to couch and he sounded _mad._ He came over to them and they both looked up at him nervously. "I want an explanation. And I want it _now._ " He said very sternly. "What is going on with you two?" No one said anything. "Okay fine. You guys can sit right there until you decide to come clean." He told them.

"What? You can't just make us sit-" Emma started, but David cut her off.

"Yes. I can. I don't want to hear anything out of either of you unless it's the truth." He told them in a no-nonsense tone.

Emma stood up. "But that's not fair! We're just trying to break the curse-" She started, but cut herself off after realizing what she was saying and her eyes went wide. "Uh… I mean..." She trailed off thinking of a lie.

"What curse?" David asked.

Emma sent a panicked glance over at her sister. "Um..." After her failure to come up with a lie, she ran into her room and locked the door.

David looked over at Raven. "What is she talking about?" Raven just shook her head. David sighed. "I'm gonna go check on your sister." David went up the stairs and tried to open the door, but he found that it was locked. "Em. Open the door. You know the rules about locking the doors." No response. "Please Em. I just want to talk." He heard the unlocking of the door, so he walked in. He was her reading the storybook on her bed. "Hey princess."

"Hi." She looked up and saw that he was worried. "I'm not crazy." She said. "I know I sound like a nutcase, but I'm really not."

He lifted her chin so they would make eye contact. "I don't think you're a _nutcase._ " He told her. "I just want you to talk to me. What curse Em?"

She sighed and pushed the storybook towards him. "Everything in this book, it actually happened. I know it sounds crazy but look," She flipped to the page of her and Ravens birth and pointed to the two babies in Snow White's arms. "That's me and Raven." The she pointed to Prince Charming and Snow. "That's you and Mary."

David wasn't sure how to respond, so he just nodded. "Okay princess." He'd just have to talk to Archie about it tomorrow.

"You don't believe do you?" She asked, then sighed after getting no response. "That's okay. I didn't believe it at first either." She admitted. "But we're gonna break the curse and bring back all the happy endings. Just you watch." She told him. "Are we still in trouble? For sneaking out… both times."

"Definitely." He told her. "Let's get back downstairs." Emma nodded.

XXX

"A month?" Raven asked after being told how long they were grounded.

David nodded. "But… that's a long time." Emma said. "Like a super long time."

"Should've thought about that before sneaking out… twice." He told them. "We need to talk about one more thing. What happened last night?"

Emma shrugged. "Nothing really."

"Em. What happened with August?"

Raven looked from David to Emma, then decided to speak up. "She said that the closet was his fault Dad."

"Shut up Rav! It doesn't matter."

"Em." He warned. She sighed. "How was the closet his fault Em. It's alright, you can tell me."

 _2 Years Ago…_

"Auggie, I miss Raven." Emma told a 16 year old August. "Mr. Stanley is getting meaner."

"I know little Ems." He said ruffling her hair. "Don't worry though. I'll protect you. I'll always protect you. No matter what. Plus, tomorrow we all meet at the secret spot."

Emma wrapped her arms around August. "I love you Auggie."

"Hey! Get out here brats!" A very drunk Mr. Stanley said. "Now!" He yelled.

Emma and August rushed out to Mr. Stanley. "Yes Mr. Stanley. Do you need something?" August asked him.

"Was that attitude?" The drunk man asked angrily. "Answer me!"

August shook his head. "No sir." He said. Emma gripped his arm tightly. "I was simply asking you if you needed something sir."

Mr. Stanley got up off the couch and stumbled towards the two. "Let go of him." He told Emma. She shook her head vigorously. He yanked Emma away from August and walked towards her threateningly. "When I tell you to do something. You do it!"

August jumped in front of him. "Stay away from her!"

Mr. Stanley grabbed August's arm. "Come with me boy!" He dragged August into another room, then pushed Emma into the closet and locked the door.

Emma was let out of the closet 2 hours later and was sent to her room, before she could see August.

XXX

Emma was in her room, when she heard noises, she knew Mr. Stanley had to be asleep by now, so it must've been August.

She came out of her room and saw August getting into Mr. Stanley's safe. "Auggie?" She whispered.

August jumped and turned around, wincing at the pain that the sudden movement caused him "Hey Ems."

"What are you doing up?"

She shrugged. "I'm not tired. What are you doing?"

"I'm sorry little Em, I have to go."

Emma was confused. "Go? Go where? When will you be back? Will you be back in time to go to the secret spot? We have to go tomorrow night." She informed him.

"Emma. I'm not going to the secret spot with you. I have to get out of here. I can't be here anymore."

She was on the verge of tears. "You can't." She whispered. "You promised to protect me. You promised. I don't want you to go. August please." She began silently crying.

"Okay Em. Okay. I'll be back in time." He told her. "I'll be back tomorrow at 10 pm." He lied. "If I'm late, just go to the secret spot by yourself and I'll meet you there." He lied again.

"Promise?"

He nodded. "Promise."

XXX

The next morning, she woke up to a note next to her. She opened it, it was from August.

 _Dear Little Emma,_

 _I'm sorry. I know I said that I'd be back, but I lied to you. I'm so very sorry Little Ems. I can't stay there any longer. You need to leave when Mr. Stanley goes to sleep. Meet Raven at your secret spot. Stick together. I'm sorry. You won't be alone with him for long. I know I shouldn't have lied, but I did. I'm sorry for breaking my promise. I love you little Ems._

 _AWB_

XXX

It was about 9:30, she was sure Mr. Stanley was asleep by now. She got up and opened her window, she was halfway out when she heard his voice.

"What do you think you're doing?!" He asked angrily. She didn't respond, she just froze and he yanked her back inside. "You're a bad girl!" He yelled. "Bad girls go to the closet!" He told her and put her in the closet.

 _Present Time…_

After Emma told them the whole story, she refused to make eye contact with anybody.

Raven squeezed her hand, but Emma still wouldn't look at her. "I love you Emmy." She whispered, after a few seconds, Emma looked at her and they hugged each other.

David then pulled his girls into a hug. "I love you both." He broke the hug and his daughters followed suit. "I have something for you guys." He told them. "I was going to wait until you were ungrounded to show you, but I think you need a bit of cheering up." He said and went in his room, then came out with some papers.

"What's that?" Raven asked. Emma looked up and saw the papers. David handed it to them.

 _Dear David Nolan._

 _You have been approved for the adoption of Emma Ruth Swan and Raven Marie Swan. For the first few months, their social worker Lucy Miller will check on them, but after 3 months the visits will be less frequent._

 _Parent signature here:_ _David Nolan_

 _Children Signatures here: _,__

 _I grant you full guardianship over Emma Ruth Nolan and Raven Marie Nolan. Congratulations to the Nolan family._

 _When this form is signed, send into the Maine office of Adoption and Fostering._

Emma and Raven looked at David with smiles on their faces. "Really?" Emma asked with a smile on her face.

David nodded. "Would you girls like a pen to sign your names?" Both girls nodded vigorously and David handed them a pen.

 _Children signatures here: Emma Ruth Swan, Raven Marie Swan_

 ** _Please Review..._**


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